Mourning His Way
by cairea
Summary: Set just after Alphard Black's death. Sirius has been named executor of his will and is responsible for the memorial service. Fluffy Angst, probable SBRL if you want to look for it.


Author's Notes: Written for a Livejournal drabble meme/challenge thingy. At 1000+ words, this obviously got a little long. *sweatdrop* But Sirius just wouldn't let me rush this. 

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Mourning His Way 

Alphard Black's funeral was not to be of the usual sort.   
  
No one knew exactly what it was to be. Everyone (meaning _everyone_, even Severus Snape had gotten one, albeit one disguised as a howler) had gotten the same exact invitation on the morning of October 10th:   
  
You are cordially invited to honour the memory of Alphard Casca Black.   
Make yourself comfortable in a place with a good view of the northeastern sky

just before 8:00 PM on the night of October the 15th and wait.   
  
  
As very few people could claim familiarity with the inner workings of Alphard's mind, speculation ran wild for several days. And nowhere did the rumor mills turn more furiously than at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, where it was well known that Sirius Black had been named the sole executor of Alphard's will. He, of course, knew exactly what was going on. Unfortunately for the curious, he was almost impossible to catch outside of classes. _Inside_ the classrooms, the teachers were being unusually strict about helping him enforce his wish to be left alone.   
  
Even his best friends James Potter, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew had no idea what was about to happen -- and not for lack of trying. When asked about it on the rare occasion that he could be caught awake, he'd just shrug and tell them that they'd see on the fifteenth with everyone else. This was usually followed by a sudden declaration of exhaustion and swift departure for bed, leaving the three of them in surprised and slightly hurt confusion. While Sirius was a master of avoiding things he didn't want to discuss, he'd never flat out refused to tell them anything before his uncle's death. Now he hardly spoke to them at all.   
  
On the fifteenth of October, almost the entire school trooped outside directly after dinner in order to ensure themselves prime viewing space. While they were doing that, Remus hurried up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower alone. James had Quidditch practice, which would end just before whatever event that was going to take place began, and Peter had a detention, or they would have come with him. As it was, though, Remus couldn't help feeling a little relieved that they weren't coming. The tone of the note Sirius had sent to them by owl (and hadn't that gotten a wonderful reaction, not just asking them to come in person), had implied that he didn't really care for company and was asking mostly out of a sense of duty to his friends.   
  
The Astronomy classroom was dark, but the door leading up to the roof of the tower was open. Assuming that Sirius meant to meet him up there, Remus ascended the stairs.   
  
Sirius was up there, lying on his back with his arms crossed behind his head. His gaze was fixed somewhat vacantly on the already dark sky. His eyes flicked to Remus as the other boy's shoes grated on the tiles of the roof and a small smile, the pale ghost of his usual grin, flickered across his face.   
  
"Hey, Moony."   
  
Remus carefully lowered himself to sit on the slanted surface beside his friend, wondering how Sirius could possibly be comfortable. "Hello, Padfoot."   
  
There was the sound of a long intake and release of breath. "Nice night."   
  
"Yes."   
  
No other words were exchanged as the appointed hour drew nearer. Sirius kept checking his watch, almost impatiently, and finally sat up, scooting up to sit closer to Remus. "Seven fifty-seven," he muttered.   
  
Three minutes ticked away, with no sound between them but the wind and the murmuring of the students below on the grounds, slowly falling into a waiting stillness as they too, counted down the seconds. There was a slight disturbance as Peeves, perhaps finding the silence a bit much to bear, began a loud, raucous drinking song somewhere on the grounds, and was cut off with a squawk. Eight o'clock fell into a heavy silence as even the wind died down in deference to whatever was going to happen.   
  
It began as a faint glimmer that very few of them would have noticed had they not been looking for it. It quickly grew into cascading sheets of multi-coloured light, shifting slowly in the night sky. A murmur rose from the crowd below. All of them took Astronomy, after all, and Professor Sinistra would almost certainly have said something if this sort of show had been expected tonight. That left only magic to explain the sudden display of aurora borealis.   
  
Beside him, Remus could feel Sirius shifting position, moving upwards and a little to the side so that he was half behind Remus now. One hand came to rest near Remus' left hip, it and the arm crossing his back a small amount of warmth in the chilly night. Still, Sirius kept his silence, even as the northern lights abandoned their natural configuration to bleed into an amorphous shape that slowly resolved itself into the figure of a rampant unicorn, rearing as if to challenge the crescent moon to a duel. A small shock of recognition went through Remus. The ring Sirius had worn since his uncle's death two weeks previously bore the same figure in silver and black.   
  
Not taking his eyes from the shimmering form above them, he let his hand drop down to cover Sirius', gently twining their fingers together. One small shudder passed through the body beside him, and a light weight came to rest on his right shoulder. Hair brushed his jaw as Remus turned his head in surprise, realizing that it was only that Sirius had let his head drop until his forehead was resting there.   
  
Smiling slightly, Remus moved back just far enough that he could lift an arm to wrap around Sirius' shoulders, who sighed and reached up with his free hand to touch Remus', not lifting his head.   
  
Above them, the light faded, and with the public memorial over, Sirius was free to mourn in his own way.   



End file.
